- "Oh, the heart. It's the only muscle in the body that can be broken with a harsh word and repaired with a gentle touch."
- — One of Danny's romantic messages to Melinda
Daniel "Danny" Smith is a bachelor on the dating game show Paths of Love. He is lacking in confidence, which is the primary reason why bachelorette Melinda doesn't feel very attracted to him.
When fellow contestant Todd Kramer is in a non-fatal car crash and it turns out that his brake lines were sabotaged, the discovery of a pair of greasy mechanic's gloves in Danny's cubbyhole makes him the prime suspect of this attempted murder. Upon further investigation, Lassiter and Juliet also find out that Danny was already in love with Melinda before the show and had taken a creative writing class as a physics major just to leave her romantic messages. This coupled with the fact that he specifically contacted the producers to appear on the show rather than the other way around causes Lassiter and Juliet to accuse him of being a stalker, one so desperate that he would go to any lengths to end up in a relationship with Melinda. According to them, Danny is planning on murdering all of the show's other bachelors to ensure that he's the only one left when Melinda has to pick a winner. This theory quickly falls apart, however, when Danny is working the grill at the mansion and is himself a victim of attempted murder through a sudden gas explosion that Shawn has to save him from.
As the show is nearing its climax, Danny's chances haven't improved much and Melinda ends up choosing Shawn. For Juliet-related reasons, though, Shawn cannot accept this victory and instead convinces Melinda that Danny is the one for her by explaining that he was the one behind the romantic notes she had received at college. She is charmed and the happy couple start preparing for marriage. However, they first have to be saved by Shawn after he figures out that cameraman Hank is the culprit he was looking for and is planning on murdering them during the final proposal shoot.
Death averted, the two lovebirds attend the reunion show two months later to get the shocking news that Todd has woken up from his coma and was even able to make it to the reunion. Melinda is absolutely smitten by the sight of him, leaving Danny frustrated and their relationship in a precarious state.